Twins
by Wynter Fyres
Summary: How do you explain a mysterious twin brother? Use the cliché. "I'm your long-lost twin," Kaito said.
1. Chapter 1

**PART ONE**

This day sucked.

I mean, really sucked. More than the rest of my week, which was a fact I was finding hard to handle because I'd already had a pop quiz sprung on me, been chased around with a mop (which wasn't very new, actually), and barely gotten any sleep due to my recurring heists. _I need better schedule management, _I told myself bitterly. _And maybe a bodyguard. _

Because what made this day suck more than all the others was the fact that I was lying in a dark street, my leg bleeding from a bullet wound...in the _rain_. See where I'm coming from?

In a way, though, I was kind of glad it was raining. Rain kept people off the streets, and that way no one stumbled along and found the elusive Kaito Kid just lying on the ground, in full costume, bleeding onto the asphalt. It would completely ruin my reputation, not to mention my clean prison record. But just because rain kept most people off the streets didn't make it impossible for someone to wander by and find the grand prize. It was this thought that spurred me forward, my hands grasping at the brick wall of the building closest to me. I used the cracks between the bricks as handholds and pulled myself painfully to my feet.

"Ow," I muttered. "Ow, ow, ow..." Water dripped from my hair into my eyes, and I realized my hat was lying in a puddle, having been flung to the ground when I had fallen. I wanted to grab it-it was my dad's hat, really-but if I bent over for it, I wasn't sure I'd be able to come back up again. _Screw it. _"Bye, hat," I mumbled sadly, and started limping away.

As I staggered along, my mind helpfully offered up places I could go. _Aoko's. _"And let her see me like this?" I argued with myself. "No way." _Jii. _Yes, Jii. He was my best bet. Why on earth did I think of Aoko first?

My foot slipped on the rain-slickened sidewalk, and I stumbled forward, most of my weight falling onto my injured left leg. I yelled a swear, thanked the rain for covering up the sound, and found myself leaning heavily against a shop window. "I hate that guy," I muttered. "I'll get him back for this." _Watch your back, Snake. _

More rain water dripped into my eyes, and I reached up with one hand to brush my hair away. But my fingers didn't reach my hair. Instead, my sleeve, drooping over my hand, pushed against my bangs. "What the...?" _It fit this morning! _But now my sleeve hung way over my hand, as if I were a little kid playing dress up. Curiously, I glanced down at my feet, and then I easily saw why I was slipping. It was simple.

My shoes were now too big. Many sizes too big.

"_No way," _I breathed. "This is nuts..." And then I caught sight of my reflection in the shop's window. I felt the air _whoosh _out of my lungs, my eyes wide with shock. I turned quickly, smacking my hands flat against the glass, and stared. _I..., _my mind sputtered. _I look...I look exactly like ten years ago! _It was impossible. Yet there I was, seven years old, looking like a child who'd just stepped out of a washing machine and into a gunfight.

_How...? _I had blacked out for only a moment, just for a second, while the pain was still fresh and Snake had still been standing over me. That couldn't have been enough time for...for..._this_. "What did he _do_?" I asked my little reflection, and I noticed for the first time how high-pitched my voice had become. All those years of puberty for nothing now.

Where could I go now? Definitely not Aoko. Jii wouldn't know what to do. If I called Mom, she wouldn't believe me, even with this voice. No one would believe me. I had too many disguises, had pulled too many pranks for them to take this seriously. Except...

If I was right, then _he _would. This had happened to him, after all. So he would get it. He'd believe me. Right?

Even if he didn't, he was my only hope now. Besides, now that my initial shock had worn off, the pain in my leg started throbbing again. It needed to be treated, and it needed to be treated soon. _Tantei-kun, _I thought, stumbling forward a couple more steps. _Tantei-kun. Here I come. _

* * *

_Mouri Detective Agency. _

It was written in bold black letters across the windows on the second story, above the coffee house. Just like I knew it would.

I lingered in the alleyway across from it, hesitant. I knew I couldn't just waltz up and ask to stay, like Tantei-kun had. I didn't have the family-friend status that he had, the _you-owe-me _card to pull. I needed a plan. A foolproof one.

Too bad that wasn't my specialty.

My heists were usually based off what Nakamori would do, not a plan for what everyone else who happened to stop by might have planned for me. My plans never really had a back-up. In fact, I worked mostly on luck and good magic. But luck wasn't going to help me here, as evidenced by the obvious bad luck I was having. I needed a _real _plan.

_I could sneak in. No, that's very untrustworthy-what if that girl of his found me? I could play lost, but then they might just turn me over to the police. Orphaned? No, then they'd send me to a foster home, not necessarily take me in..._

And then I thought: _If only I had a family friend, too._

Then I wondered for a moment at my stupidity, because the plan was simple. It was foolproof. No one would suspect I was lying...if only I could get Tantei-kun to go along with it. But, with nothing else I could do, I limped to the nearest phone booth and prayed he would answer.

The phone rang exactly nine times, almost went to voicemail, before an annoyed voice came through. "Oi. Who's this?"

I felt a smile stretch across my face. "Tantei-kun!" I said, relieved.

"Eh?" His voice was confused now. "Who's this?" he repeated, and I remembered that my voice was different. He wouldn't recognize it.

"Listen," I said quickly, urgently, "I know this is going to sound crazy, but I don't know who else to call and-"

"You've got the wrong number," Tantei-kun interrupted. "If you want Uncle Mouri, you need to-"

"It's Kaito!" I burst finally, exasperated.

There was silence for a moment. Then an incredulous, _"What?" _

"Yeah, yeah," I muttered. "I had that reaction, too."

"Who's voice did you steal now?" he demanded. "Or is this a prank call? This better not be a prank call at..." There was a pause. "Two in the morning!"

"This is _my _voice!" I insisted. "I met up with this guy named Snake, and he shot me. I blacked out for a bit, and when I woke up I...I was like you!"

"You are kidding me."

"No! Look, I didn't know who else to call..."

"This Snake guy," interrupted Tantei-kun, "he had the drug? He's..."

"Shut up for a minute and help me first!" I shouted into the receiver. "We'll figure that out later. But, right now, I have a plan."

"A plan?" Tantei-kun asked. He sounded wary.

"Yeah." I found myself grinning. "You're gonna love it. But first, I need you to throw an outfit out one of your windows."

"An outfit? Why?"

"Do you want me to come into your house in a bloody Kaito Kid costume?"

"Wait, come in-"

"Just do it!"

I heard him grumbling on the other end, the sound of a drawer opening and closing, and I quickly hung up the phone and staggered as quickly as I could back around the building where I knew the bedroom windows were. As soon as I came into view of one, I saw a small bundle tumble down onto the concrete, then a small face peering curiously after it. I came closer until I was directly under the window, then waved slightly up at the face.

"So he really did shrink," I heard above me, and I scowled. _Would I lie about that? _

Slowly, wincing at the pain in my leg, I lifted the clothes off the ground, then looked back up at Tantei-kun. "Be up in a bit," I said as loudly as I dared.

"Kid, wait!" Tantei-kun whispered down, but I was already gone, slipping into the shadows of the nearest alley to change quickly into the clothes he'd tossed to me. I scowled at his taste-_white t-shirt, blue vest, shorts? This is so old-fashioned_-but I slipped into them anyway, leaving my costume in the closest, most abandoned-looking dumpster to hopefully come back for it later. Then I started back for the agency.

_Tantei-kun, _I thought, _you had better help me fix this. _

* * *

I got all the way up the stairs and to the door marked _Mouri Detective Agency_ before I realized I was so short now that I'd have to stand on my tiptoes to reach the door knob. "Jeez," I muttered, and reached for the knob. "Just...a little...closer," I said, stretching towards the door knob.

Then I heard, "Oi, Kid. Up here."

I fell back to the balls of my feet and looked up the stairs to my right and saw Tantei-kun at the top, his head poking out a different door. "Apartment's up here," he explained.

I fought back a sigh, wondering how many more stairs my leg could take. I was afraid it'd bleed through my new shorts, and then how would I pass off as a normal kid if they noticed the bullet wound? I wouldn't, that's how, but I braved the other set of stairs and painstakingly made my way up.

"Hurry up!" hissed Tantei-kun.

I shot him a glare. "I'm going as fast as I can," I snapped. "I told you, I got shot!"

"You better tell me what this 'plan' of yours is," he replied simply as I got closer to the top step.

"Hmph." I held out my hand and he helped me up the last step. Then he opened the door and I stumbled into a shadowy living room. I blinked, my eyes adjusting to the darkness, and I heard him shut the door behind me.

"What's your plan?" demanded Tantei-kun.

"Jeez," I said, and I smiled a little. "No hello?" When he just looked a me, I knew he was in no mood for my humor. I wasn't really in the mood for it, either, but how else would I cope with all this? "My plan," I started, "is very simple. It involves you..."

"I figured," Tantei-kun said, "considering you called me."

"...and me being brothers."

There was a small pause before he said, "Did I hear you right? You want to play my brother?"

"Conan's brother, really," I said. "Can I sit down? My leg's killing me."

"You will have to get that treated, you know," Tantei-kun said, and I noted a slight tone of concern. I wanted to laugh-he was worried about me? Never seemed that way before.

"For now," I said, "just help me to a couch."

There was a sigh, then his hand gripped my arm and I was being led across the dark room. "Really," he mumbled, "you're a death wish walking." Then my knee bumped into something soft and I was being pushed onto a couch. "Better?" he asked flatly.

"Much," I replied.

"Why do we have to be brothers?" he asked after a moment. "Couldn't you just...I don't know...play that butler of yours' grandkid?"

"Jii's grandkid?" I repeated, and I nearly burst out laughing. "If I go to Jii like this he'd lose his mind," I explained. "Saying things like 'Your father will never forgive me.'"

"So you're just going to let him think you're missing?"

"Even if I'm missing," I told him, "I'll still be Kaito. Not..._this_. Better to be the brother of someone in my same condition."

"Condition?" He snorted. "You say it like it has a cure already."

"It may not yet, but you're looking into it, so a cure's a possibility." I raised an eyebrow. "Right?"

Silence for a minute, then, "We're looking into it."

_That answers my question, _I thought sarcastically. "Until then," I said aloud, "call me brother."

"I didn't agree to any of this," objected Tantei-kun. "I mean, how do I explain you to everyone? A mysterious brother coming out of nowhere?"

"Use the cliche." At his blank look, I grinned. "I'm your long-lost twin."__

* * *

_**Thought I'd start uploading this. Would like feedback on the idea! -Wynter Fyres**_


	2. Chapter 2

**PART TWO**

"Conan-kun!"

The call woke me up, and I blinked groggily. For a moment, the world was fuzzy, and I couldn't remember where I was. "Jii," I mumbled, "you will never believe the dream I just-"

"Shhh!" hissed a voice close to me, and I jumped. When I looked up, Tantei-kun was glaring down at me. "Do you want her to hear you?" he demanded in a whisper.

"Her...what..." I blinked again, and then I remembered. I'd been shot, shrunk, and left in the rain. I'd come to Tantei-kun's. I was now his "brother." Rubbing my eyes, I sat up on the bed and Tantei-kun crossed his arms. I had slept in his bed due to my injury, and he had taken the floor.

I yawned before finally saying, "I've got to meet her sometime, Conan-oniisan."

Tantei-kun's face looked disgusted. "Really? 'Oniisan?'"

"You're the older twin." I smiled, and he rolled his eyes. "When are you going to introduce me to Ran-neechan?" I asked cheerfully, and he looked further horrified.

"That's even weirder!"

"Well?"

Tantei-kun sighed and shook his head. "Too much trouble," I thought I heard him mutter, but I wasn't sure. Then he gave me a look. "This would be much easier," he said with an accusatory tone, "if you just 'showed up' randomly at the door! Not if you just come walking out of my room suddenly."

"Do you want me to crawl out the window now like this?" I questioned, gesturing to my leg. It'd already bled through the shorts he'd lent me, and I'd have to borrow another pair.

Even though I said it sarcastically, he looked as though he were seriously thinking the idea over. "Maybe..."

"No," I deadpanned. "I was joking."

"Conan-kun!" There was a knock at the door, and we both jumped. "Wake up, Conan-kun! You'll be late for school!"

"U-Um, coming!" he called out quickly, then looked back to me like _What do we do?_

"I can _not _crawl out that window," I told him decisively.

"Co-nan-kun!" She was emphasizing each word, each syllable laced with exasperation.

"Coming!" he shouted, and Tantei-kun put his forefinger and his thumb to the bridge of his nose as if holding back a headache. "Oh, God."

I sighed a little. "Do I always have to come up with a plan?" I demanded, then reached forward and pulled his glasses off his face. He sputtered an "O-Oi!" but I'd already shoved the glasses onto my face and thrown back the covers. "Get me some new shorts," I told him. "And some shoes...Oniisan."

"What are you-"

"It's time I become part of the happy family." I winked at him. "So I'm going to spend a day in your shoes. So hurry and get me my school stuff so I can go."

"I thought you were my twin," objected Tantei-kun, "not me!"

"I thought you were Kudo Shinichi," I retorted, "and not a first grader, but look how that turned out. Look, it's just for the-"

"Conan-kun! Hurry up!"

We both jumped again, and I heard him mutter a fine, "Fine, you deal with her."

I grinned triumphantly.

* * *

_"Conan!" _

I turned, and I saw four kids heading down the sidewalk towards me. They looked familiar, and then I realized I'd seen them with Tantei-kun before. And then I realized, when they yelled Conan, they meant me. _I'll have to get used to that, _I thought, then put on my best Conan expression. "Hey, guys," I said. I paused for a minute, thinking back-

"_You'll meet four kids along the way," _Tantei-kun had said. _"If you don't, I'll be very surprised. The big one is Genta. The skinny boy is called Mitsuhiko. Ayumi-chan is the small, black-haired girl. And if you want this trick of yours to work, you'll have to fool Haibara, the other girl." _He grinned at me. _"Have fun with that."_

"Did you watch the soccer finals last night?" asked the skinny one-_Mitsuhiko_-as he got closer. "Did you see Hide and Naoki?"

_Oh, crap. _I didn't watch soccer. Sports weren't my thing. I spent my childhood learning how to pull a dove out of a hat! I racked my brain for a Conan-like response. "Of course I watched it," I said finally. "Naoki sure did great, didn't he?" And then I waited for their reactions.

The black-haired girl, Ayumi, grinned. "That's what I told them!" she said happily. "But they said Hide was better."

"I thought you liked Hide better than Naoki," frowned Genta, and I scrambled for a response.

"I just like soccer," I told them. Then, quickly, "Aren't we going to be late for school?"

Mitsuhiko checked his watch and his eyes widened. "You're right!" He looked back at the others. "Come on, we got to hurry!" And the three took off down the sidewalk.

_Three? _questioned my brain, and I looked over my shoulder to find the last one, _Haibara_, looking at me with a funny expression on her face. _You'll have to fool Haibara if you want this to work, _Tantei-kun's voice told me, and I frowned at her in a very Conan-like way.

"Oi," I said, imitating his voice, "what's up with you?"

She didn't say anything, but one side of her mouth curved up in what I thought was a smile. Or a smirk. I couldn't tell, because then Ayumi was calling, "Hurry, Conan-kun," and my focus slipped to where the other three were far down the sidewalk already. "We'll be late!" Ayumi shouted.

I took a couple steps forward, then glanced back at Haibara again. She was still standing there, watching me with that odd smile. "You coming?" I asked impatiently, and she silently started walking behind me. When she couldn't see my face, I knew my expression slipped into one of concern. _This might be harder than I thought._

* * *

"Aren't you going to come play soccer, Conan?"

I looked back and offered a small, apologetic smile because they really did look disappointed. "Sorry, guys," I said, "but I promised Ran-neechan that I'd help her make dinner tonight."

"You can cook?" asked Mitsuhiko incredulously.

I frowned at him. "What's that supposed to mean?" Then I shook my head. "Never mind. I got to go. See you tomorrow!" And before they could question me further, I ran off down the street towards the detective agency. _Second worst day ever, _I thought to myself, because I'd spent the whole day going over things like five times seven or the water cycle, things that had been beaten into my head since my own elementary days. _Jeez, Tantei-kun, I feel bad for you. _Because he'd spent almost a year like this, those "Detective Boys" as his classmates. How did he survive? Or at the very least keep his sanity?

I ran down a couple more blocks, then burst through the door and started to jog up the stairs, then halted with a cry of _"Ow!" _I looked down at my leg and saw blood beginning to seep through my shorts. I muttered a swear-I'd reopened the wound running. I went up the stairs at a snail's pace from there, knocked on the door, and waited for someone to open it. When Tantei-kun finally unlocked the door, instead of 'hello,' I said, "I need new shorts."

"What? That's your second pair!"

"I know. I need another one."

"Jeez." He stepped aside and let me in, and I slung his backpack onto the floor by the couch I'd rested on the night before. "You really need to get that checked out," he insisted, shutting the door behind me.

"Once I come up with a believable story besides getting shot," I replied. "For now, I need some more pants before someone comes home and sees the blood."

Tantei-kun shook his head, then hurried into his room. I heard him rummaging around and he called out to me, "So? How'd it go?"

"Your life sucks," I answered. "How can you stand learning your fives all over again?"

"I started with the ones." He came out and tossed me my third pair of shorts, and I stripped the bloody ones off and threw them back to him to put in the washer. As he did that, he asked, "Did anyone know it wasn't me?"

"Don't think so." I paused, one leg in my new shorts, and remembered the girl Haibara's funny smile at the beginning. She hadn't acted strange the rest of the day. In fact, she hadn't talked at all. But that one smile... "That Haibara friend of yours gave me the creeps, though," I admitted after a minute. "She may know, but I can't really tell. Does she ever talk?"

"More than you think," he answered, and the washer door slammed shut. He turned back to me and raised an eyebrow. "So?"

I finished buttoning the shorts and raised an eyebrow right back at him. "So what?"

Tantei-kun sighed like I was driving him mad, which I quite possibly was. I specialized in that. "So," he said slowly, like I was stupid, and I made a face at him, "how do we explain you to Ran and Uncle? How would I never know I had a twin brother?"

I smiled, but since it was from me, I knew it didn't reassure him. "Don't worry," I told him, "I'm great at acting. And lying."

"That's not a good thing."

"No, being an actor is great." I grinned at his expression. "Don't worry," I said again. "I know what I'm doing." _Biggest. Lie. Ever. Told you I'm good at lying. _

I knew he wasn't reassured anyway. Nothing I said would make him feel better until this all actually worked itself out. If it did. "How long do we have until she gets home?" I asked.

"Any minute now," he said. "I don't know where Uncle-"

The door slammed open, and we both leapt backwards, startled. A man with a moustache and cheeks stained with a drunken flush staggered in, a bottle clutched in one fist and a girl in a school uniform holding him upright on his other side. "Jeez," she said irritably, "it's not even dinner time yet and you're already drunk!"

"Beer's good at any time of time!" the man replied loudly, hiccupped, then stumbled forward with her before tripped and falling onto the couch. There was a moment of silence that was soon filled with loud snoring, the bottle in his fist dangling over the edge of the couch and dripping alcohol onto the carpet.

"Jeez," she said again, putting her hands on her hips. Then she turned and saw me. "Conan-kun," she said, "will you go get me a towel..." She trailed off, catching sight of Tantei-kun on my left. "Conan-kun?" Her voice sounded confused.

"U-Um, Ran-neechan," Tantei-kun stuttered nervously. "This...This is..."

I searched my brain quickly for a name, any name that wasn't Kaito, then held out my hand with a friendly smile. "My name," I said cheerfully, "is Lupin. Nice to meet you."

Tantei-kun gave me a look of disbelief, and Ran smiled a little back and shook my hand. "Very proper. Nice to meet you, too, Lupin-san." Ran looked from me to Tantei-kun, then back again. "You and Conan-kun look very much alike..."

"There's a reason for that." I kept my smile pasted on my face despite the butterflies in my belly, then pulled the handwritten note I'd forged earlier at school out of my sweater pocket. "This is a note...from our mom."

Ran frowned, confused still, but took the note. "Um, all right," she said uncertainly. "But, Conan-kun, can you and your...friend get me a towel to clean up Dad's mess?"

"O-Okay." Tantei-kun looked at me. "Come on..._Lupin_."

I grinned at him, and as we walked away I looked over my shoulder and saw the look of shock on her face as she read the note. "No way," I heard her mutter.

_All according to plan. _

* * *

Tantei-kun and I were seated at one end of the couch, Ran perched on the arm of the other end. Detective Mouri was pacing with a cigarette and a lighter, fumbling to light the tobacco. When Ran had shaken him awake with the news, he had almost instantly sobered up with the shock.

He finally got his cigarette to light, took a deep breath of smoke, and exhaled slowly, the smoke drifting into the room. Ran must've really been shocked because she didn't say anything about it. After a moment, Mouri finally said, "Twins? You _are _kidding, right?"

"No, sir." I smiled. "It's all true." I glanced over to Tantei-kun, who looked entirely uncomfortable, and my smile widened. "Isn't that right, Oniisan?"

He blinked at me. "I-I guess." He paused, then chuckled nervously. "To be honest, I didn't know either."

Mouri swore and took another drag of his cigarette. With a sigh and a puff of smoke, he said, "Jeez, I'm getting sick of your crap, Conan," and Tantei-kun just chuckled again. "Every day, something weird happens around you," he continued. "I dunno if you're good luck or bad luck sometimes."

"Dad," snapped Ran warningly, and Mouri looked at her like _What? _

"It took me awhile to find you, Oniisan," I said to Tantei-kun, distracting them from their quarrel. "But once I finally found our mom, it was easy. She even paid for my flight here from America."

"How do you not know about having a twin brother?" demanded Mouri. "I mean, you were born at the same time!"

"Mom couldn't keep us both," I explained, and I began spinning the tale I'd spent all gym thinking up. "You see, our mother was very young when she had us and couldn't afford us, so she had to give one of us up for adoption, but she couldn't bear to give us both away. She felt bad about separating us later, and just decided not to tell us about the other so we wouldn't feel sad. But my foster mother let the detail slip one day, and they helped me find my mom, and she got me here to find you." I grinned in a happy, childish way at Tantei-kun, and he made a slight face back at me like _What kind of story was that?_

"That's so sad," said Ran after a moment. She smiled next. "But now you got to meet!" She seemed to be getting over the bombshell I'd dropped on her. She turned her smile to Tantei-kun and said, "Isn't that great, Conan-kun? You have a twin brother!"

"Y-Yeah." Tantei-kun, however, did not seem to be quite over it. He still looked nervous like we'd be found out at any moment, shifting anxiously on the couch, and I realized he must be a horrible liar. _What was his saying? One truth prevails? _

Ran seemed to notice his nervousness and laid a hand on his shoulder. When he looked up at her, she said gently, "Conan-kun, how about you go make us some tea while we talk to Lupin-san?"

"Both have weird names," I heard Mouri mutter. "Definitely related."

"Sure," Tantei-kun said, looking relieved for the chance to get out of the room, and he hurried off into the kitchen.

I felt my grin widening on my face. _Time for phase two. _Which I had developed during the time I suffered through repeating "five times 3 is fifteen" for the hundredth time. I turned to Ran and tugged on her sleeve. "Mouri-san," I whispered. "I have to tell you something."

She blinked down at me. "Um, all right."

"It's important." I made my voice as serious and demanding of attention as a seven-year-old's voice can be, and she frowned curiously at me. "Please listen."

"What is it, kid? Spit it out," said Mouri, and I shushed him. I didn't want Tantei-kun hearing this. Not yet, anyway.

I took a deep breath like this was very hard for me to admit, then said, "When I found my mother, she told me the real reason Conan-kun decided to stay here after she and my father recovered from their accident."

"Real reason?" asked Ran. "I thought he liked it here."

I nodded. "Yes, he does. But, also, he's a genius. A child prodigy."

Mouri instantly snorted. "That brat?" he demanded disbelievingly. "He only knows useless stuff."

"But would you know any of that 'useless stuff?'" I retorted, and Mouri stammered something like, "Well...Well, I..." But I interrupted him. "He knows more, of course. Lots of stuff. Like me," and I smiled here. "But in America he was bullied a lot because of it. It got so bad that he started failing tests on purpose to be 'normal.' So when he came here, he used that same act, so he could start anew. So he wouldn't be bullied."

"Poor Conan-kun!" said Ran, her voice full of sympathy.

_Hook-line-sinker. _I fought back a triumphant grin and went on with the rest of my story. "In fact..." I paused for effect and cast the detective a solemn glance. "I think he may be the reason beside your sudden success."

Mouri nearly spat out his cigarette. He choked for a minute, then managed to say, "No way! You don't know what you're talking about!"

I frowned at him. "It's true!" I insisted. "Think about it. Your deductions made no sense until Oniisan showed up. Then, suddenly, you would black out, and when you'd wake up you'd have no memory of the case you supposedly solved. Except the last thing you remember is Oniisan telling you something like, 'Look at what I found!' or 'Come here, Uncle!'"

"Th-That's because...!" sputtered Mouri, and when I glanced out of the corner of my eye, there was a funny expression on Ran's face, almost like she was seeing the sense in what I was saying.

"That's because," I went on, "we really are relatives of this Doctor Agasa, and he made Oniisan a watch with a tranquilizer. He's always loved Sherlock Holmes, and when he saw the chance to repay you for taking him in, he took it. He solved all those cases and gave you the credit." I finished solemnly, "He made you the famous detective, with all this work, that you are today."

"I don't believe you," said Mouri, but he didn't sound as confident as his words.

I smiled a little. "Then why don't you call that precinct you're always helping out and ask them? They've probably noticed his strange habits and actions. Just ask and you'll find out everything." It was a challenge, and he stared at me for a moment before diving for his phone and jabbing in the police headquarters' number.

"Do you really think that's true?" asked Ran quietly, and I looked at her curiously. "That Conan-kun's been solving all Dad's cases," she elaborated.

I nodded firmly. "I know it." And I did, much better than they actually knew. I turned back to Mouri, who had answered to someone by the name of _Takagi._

"Officer Takagi," he was saying, "I was wanting to ask you a few questions. No, not about that case, about..." He paused as if embarrassed, then finished, "About Conan."

"_Conan-kun?" _came the officer's confused voice. _"Why are you asking me about Conan-kun?"_

"Well, I, uh..." he stammered for a moment, then snapped, "Just answer the question!" At the officer's startled "Y-Yes," Mouri asked, "Have you...Have you noticed anything strange about Conan? Like, that makes him different some other kids?"

At that, I could hear the officer start laughing. When Mouri demanded to know what was so funny, Takagi said, _"Everyone's noticed that. Everyone who sees him at a crime scene can tell he's a little unusual. In fact, do you remember that case a while back? About the bomb me and Conan-kun were trapped with?"_

"Um, yes," answered Mouri.

"_Well, he was the one figuring everything out,"_ admitted Takagi, and I saw Mouri's mouth drop open. _"He was the one clipping wires, who saved everyone, actually. I remember asking him,_ _Who in the world are you?_"

"And? What'd he say?"

"_He said, I'll tell you in the next life." _Takagi laughed again. _"He's a bit of a morbid kid. Very strange. But I like him, don't you?"_ He laughed for the third time, and Mouri wordlessly hung up.

"Dad? What'd he say?" asked Ran.

"He said," Mouri said in a strange voice, "that Conan was the one who saved everyone at the bombing a while back. With Takagi."

Just then, Tantei-kun came in with a tea tray. When we all turned to stare at him, he paused in the doorway and frowned. "What?" he asked nervously. "Is there something on my face?"

* * *

_I tried to make this as believable as possible, but for some reason I feel like I botched up their personalities...I hope you like it! -Wynter Fyres._


End file.
